My parents were VERY social and their only child is a bonified hermit, but when I'm in Texas, it's impossible to be a hermit. My parents built this house in '96 and we were already married so I never lived here, but the neighbors have become family through the years and they have been taking good care of me when I'm down. They have been spoiling me:
I drove through Fredrickburg on my way down and I picked up peaches for one of the neighbors:
The next day she brought me some delicious, warm peach cobbler:
I've cleaned out all the food in the house, but I feel I should take SOMETHING when invited to supper. My Summer Berry Pie is a good choice so I hit the grocery store at 6:30 in the morning and bought the ingredients. I had shared the recipe with my mom years ago and she made it each year for fundraiser bake sales.
I was on the phone with another one of my parents' dear friends on Sunday and she asked what I was doing. When I told her I was making the pie, she said that was her favorite pie. So I was back at the grocery store at 6 the next morning for more pie parts. LOL.
Tuesday was also a neighbors' 53rd anniversary so I bought a balloon when I was buying pie ingredients and tied it to their front door early in the morning with a card.
Another neighbor is fighting Leukemia and goes in for blood twice a week. Her 70th birthday is just around the corner. A friend of hers decided to ask 70 friends to donate blood and share pictures she would gather and present to this dear lady. Isn't that a wonderful idea?! I was happy to be included.
Then 2 different dinners out - all while trying to finish going through every single closet-drawer-cabinet in the house and make final decisions on what to keep.
I had another supper invitation the next night. They fed me the last time I was here and I took Summer Berry Pie too. LOL. Time to come up with another option, but I was limited since the estate sale people were beginning on Wednesday morning and all food needed to be out of the house. So I took the last bottle of wine and 2 of the Gray Wolf (my dad's name was Wolf) wine glasses friends always used when they visited my folks. I had 12 of those glasses and I gave each neighbor a pair.
I'm so grateful for these special friends who were such an important part of my parents' lives, but, whew! This social thing is exhausting for a hermit.
If I was home, I'd be making cookies for the estate sale folks, but they just had to settle for Krispy Kreme Donuts.
I sold my mom's 2010 Volvo to her housekeeper - a friend - for $11,000. It was in impeccable condition and I just put 50,000 miles on it the day before. So that was another item I was able to check off of my list.
DH drove down with our horse trailer on Wednesday and he pulled in as I came back from the title company and we loaded the things we were keeping:
I told DH if we strapped the rocking chair to the top, we'd look like the Beverly Hillbillies:
We drove back home on Thursday and it's SO good to be back home again, but boy howdy! Has it been HOT! I went out to gather eggs and I fully expected them to be hard-boiled. LOL
Then, on Saturday, we loaded up again and headed back to Texas...for a horse sale.
I am carving out some time on Sunday to write this post. I'm falling behind again - I've got more posts to write, but we are just plumb tuckered out, but so grateful for God's hand in every moment.
12 comments:
Good morning, I'm glad that you are being taken care of thru this time Karin. It's nice to know how well thought of your parents were in their neighborhood. I hope things settle down for you soon. Have a lovely day.
All those desserts look so good! Your mother's house should sell fast! I didn't think people were as neighborly now as when I was growing up but your parents' neighborhood has proved me wrong! That isn't a good quilt used to wrap that rocking chair, is it? We are expecting 90's in Prague this week. We usually only get those high temps for two weeks in August. Most people do not have air conditioning but we have one in our bedroom. Hope you get some much needed rest!
Good to hear from you! Deciding all that on your own is tough! The heat in itself wears you out! It’s been hot and dry here in NW Iowa also. We need rain so badly for the crops. Take care!
I've been watching the weather and seeing the high temps in Phoenix, I thought that New Mexico must be having high temps also! Take care in that heat!
I will be helping with an estate sale soon (across the street) and I would appreciate any Helpful Pointers you can give me! (If you have time! You have my email...)
I know how hard that is on you but definitely made easier being surrounded by friends of your folks. And I know it's hard being away from your honey and your home. Hopefully the estate sale will be a huge success and when the sale of the house comes, that should go real quick! They won't take my blood anymore but YEARS ago, 3 of us would go every 8 weeks to give for a friend of one of the 3 that was dealing with leukemia and we did what we could to help.
In time, after the whirlwind of all that needed doing to get your mother's home ready for sale has died down, you'll look back on these moments with her friends and neighbors with fond memories.
Glad to hear that the neighbors are still taking care of you. So sweet of your to show your appreciation with your pies!
I've just marveled at all you have done by yourself. We have been through this process with my in-laws and it took an army of family about 4 years to accomplish what you have done alone in a fraction of the time. You must be carried on angel wings!
That is a gorgeous photo at the end.
Your mama and daddy raised a sweetheart! Even though you're not naturally a socialite, you have the heart of a giver and someone who cares for those around her. I LOVE the image of the rocking chair--your humor makes me chuckle.
You have been so crazy busy - i am glad all the neighbors are taking care of you, but it is still hard for a hermit.... sometimes... we just need our space. You are so sweet to add baking in there too! Hope your horse sale was fun!
So are you just about completely done? This has been such a job for you. It is wonderful that your parents had such good friends who have been so kind to you while you're having to do all this.
I was an adult before I realized not everyone used a horse trailer to move! Seeing you use it feels so normal!
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